


the sun resides inside me

by llien



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Dialogue Light, Love Confessions, M/M, Past Serious Injuries, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-05
Updated: 2020-03-05
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:08:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23032240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/llien/pseuds/llien
Summary: With a shaky laugh, Sora took the pretty stone out from his pocket.He'd kept it, of course.Admiring its shiny translucency in the sun, Sora carefully set the stone into carving, half afraid he'd break the thin wood with his pressure. But it clicked in and Sora couldn't help his grin, satisfied and proud of himself."Is this where you've been running off to?"
Relationships: Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 177





	the sun resides inside me

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [in silence to these songs](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22887595) by [pineovercoat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pineovercoat/pseuds/pineovercoat). 



> pineovercoat issued the challenge and I went overboard by about 500 some words — oops.
> 
> all the love in the world to Cru, who helped with the design of the charm.

Sora hummed a song with little rhyme or rhythm. The sea breeze today was ceaseless and Sora's hair had given up keeping any shape as it permanently lifted off his forehead only to come back down. 

On the far side of the island was a little inlet, not particularly secret but not popular outside of lovers seeking privacy. Sora had been retreating here for a while now, just a little bit at a time before anyone grew concerned about his absence. The play island was as popular as ever, and Sora made sure to visit often.

In his gloved hand was a flat, two-inch long piece of wood. It was from a branch of driftwood that had been resting on the sand one day. Inspired, Sora had cut off a few chunks, stripped the bark, prepared it, waited, and begun.

It'd been so long since he'd carved that Sora felt like he'd forgotten, but there was a strange peace he found in following the grain, in discovering a shape in the wood. Wood carving had been one of the few hobbies Sora didn't share with anyone, and this was the first project he'd had since he was fourteen.

Holding it this way and that, he took his palm-sized V-tool and continued diligently at the details. This wasn't really Sora's forte, but inspiration did as it pleased, and Sora loved making gifts.

It was a little difficult since he had to recall it from memory and make sure he shaped it _just right._ If he messed this up, he'd have to start all over again. 

The ocean surf in the distance was muted beneath the leaves swaying in the wind, and Sora's skin was sun-warm, just like the sand around him. He sat with his back against another piece of driftwood, tools laying on a blanket weighed down by stones. Sand was everywhere and getting used to that again had been odd, knowing now what it was like to be sand-free. It was definitely in his hair and in his clothes, but enough time had made it a comfort. 

All the days back in the sun brought his tan and freckles out in full force, and sitting in the tiny, hidden inlet with the sun and sea and breeze made Sora feel almost like he was a dormant part of the island, waking up to move around curiously before settling back into this groove in the sand, bare feet covered in dried ocean water and salt on his skin. 

He blew on his carving and inspected it further. It looked... done. He cocked his head. Maybe?

Sora set aside his tools and grabbed the length of leather he'd braided first, even though wrapping his fingers around _his_ wrist had earned him a funny look. Grinning at the memory, Sora secured the bracelet to either end of the emblem, and with a shaky laugh, he took the pretty stone out from his pocket.

He'd kept it, of course. 

Admiring its shiny translucency in the sun, Sora carefully set the stone into carving, half afraid he'd break the thin wood with his pressure. But it clicked in and Sora couldn't help his grin, satisfied and proud of himself. 

"Is this where you've been running off to?"

Sora yelped and practically threw the bracelet into the ocean with how hard he jumped. Scrambling around, he held it against his fast-beating heart in his fist, bracing himself against the driftwood.

Riku was there, frowning curiously at Sora and the now disturbed tools. His hair was lighter from all the sun, but he never tanned as well as Sora, and there was still the hint of a sunburn on his shoulders and nose. It charmed Sora a little, that Riku was still human sometimes.

"You scared me!" Sora said, heart rate calming down as he furiously blushed. Had Riku seen? No, right? Did he? He peered at Riku but didn't find any hint of him knowing.

"I thought walking through the sand was loud enough," Riku shrugged, unapologetic. He stepped over the driftwood and sat on it, forcing Sora to lean back. "Carving again?"

It was the one thing Riku had never had interest in. Sora squeezed the charm tighter. "Yeah..." licking his lips, Sora tucked his legs under him and sat beside Riku on the wood, barely big enough to accommodate them both. It left them sitting flush beside each other, and Riku shifted. "I found a piece of driftwood here."

"Here, huh," Riku murmured, looking out at the horizon again. For all their travels, Riku could still lose himself in his thoughts. Sora nudged his shoulder and Riku came back with a startled blink. "What did you make?"

Sora squeezed so hard he could feel the stone and edges of the wood pressing into his skin. Riku reached over and tugged on the bracelet dangling loose, and Sora sucked in a breath. 

"A gift for you," Sora said, summoning every ounce of courage he had. Riku looked confused for a second, but then an adorable flush struck across his cheeks, and he averted his eyes for a moment. Still, the next time he crooked his finger and tugged on the leather band, Sora let his curled fingers fall open.

Nestled in the red-white of his palm was the crown of their combined keyblade. It was sideways, and the pretty stone was flat enough to fit in the top curl of the heart. Embarrassed but determined to see it through, Sora was too scared to see Riku's expression as he gently grasped Riku's left hand. 

It was the one always covered in a sleeve or brace, and Sora slid the athletic band there off to bare his wrist. There was a long line of twisted puckered skin where the break had healed along his wrist and arm. Pressing the thin wood to the inside of Riku's wrist, Sora tied the braid off so it remained flush against Riku's skin, right over the scar. 

Done, he hesitated, then grazed his fingers backwards against the back of Riku's upturned hand, before slotting his fingers between Riku's and curling them in. Riku's twitched, but he remained still, and Sora dug up the last reserves of his courage.

He pulled Riku's hand up and kissed his palm, then dropped it with a nervous laugh. He was positive he was beet red, but he'd been thinking this over and over as he carefully carved the charm. There wasn't any doubt, no second guesses. He couldn't deny being nervous but somehow, sitting side by side in the little inlet with not another soul around calmed him. 

"Sora," Riku said, and he looked up to find him tracing the little design with nimble fingers, his expression stricken with something Sora couldn't really put a name to. "Is this...?"

"Yeah," Sora said, and he stretched his legs lazily, creating grooves of sand and digging his heels in the sand as he grasped the driftwood to balance himself. "Just from memory though. I can't summon it without you."

"This whole time you kept disappearing, it was to make this?" Riku asked, seemingly stuck on something. Sora hadn't thought anyone really noticed his little disappearing act and he chuckled nervously.

"For the most part, yeah! It took a while to get used to carving again, and this wasn't exactly an easy first-time. I should've started on something else, honestly." The sheer amount of times he thought he'd nearly ruined it was a lesson well learned. Probably.

Sora met Riku's eyes and grinned, and Riku finally laughed, a tiny breathless sound. 

"You're unbelievable," Riku murmured.

Sora frowned. "Is that a good thing?"

"It always has been," Riku said simply, and painstakingly slow, he leaned down until his head rested on Sora's shoulder. Sora thought it probably wasn't very comfortable for Riku, but he kept still anyways and let him run the wheels in his brain, to consider the meaning and gravity and the truth of it all. Shy hands found Sora's forearm, and Sora let Riku's minute seeking touches draw him free, so their hands could intertwine. 

At the end, Sora would still be there, patiently waiting for Riku to return to him. 

Riku didn't disappoint him. 

**Author's Note:**

> "what about a soriku confession that doesn't ever actually use the words 'I love you'?" was the challenge. I wonder if the sentiment actually carried through, though...?


End file.
